It may be my dial-up but I only see the picture of the sled....

 

ya i only see one pic, cool paintjob though.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (greythorn3 @ Feb 9 2010, 10:01 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

ya i only see one pic, cool paintjob though.[/b]

same here

 

One of my favorite years of the T-cat and I really like the paint job.

 

picture is up now, had camera on wrong setting.

 

New Jug, Piston, Rings and gaskets to start, then find out why she blew up. Maybe to lean, maybe to many miles, maybe too low on coolant, could be sucking air air somewhere intake/exhaust, wrong plugs. Getting it back together is one thing figuring out why she BANG is another. Good luck

 

heck i bet jbweld could fix that one!

 

Don't forget the duck tape LOL

 

its better then bailing wire! Cat happy

 

I would pull the motor all the way apart and check the crank bearings and blance shaft bearings as well, put all new seals in it, and the most important thing is to replace the waterpump seals, thats a big issue on the triples with balance shafts meaning 800s,900s,1000 triples, the water pump seals go and leak internaly and wipe out the crank and balance shaft bearings and blows a hole through the block meaning JUNK MOTOR, prevent that from happening and tear it all down while you have it this far apart any ways and make sure your bearings are good and oil them up and change all the seals out.

 

I'am with romp....

Now is the time to take it all the way down, I would guess $1000 as long as it's just one cylinder.

Just a thought, The future son in law and I have been looking at zr 440's 96-97 because I can't stand him always wanting to ride my sled. Anyway around me and into minnesota $ 1000 buy's you a sled that needs alot of work.

Mike

 

My guess is you snapped off a piston skirt, this is a typical problem with T-cats. I suspect you broke the case or the jug since you were leaking coolant. Take the engine out and look for damage. I change my pistons every 5000 miles to try and avoid this problem.

 

it won't be no 1000 dollars. i got my 600 for only 1400. nothing had to be done to it.

what does the head look like. it looks like something got in their and got smashed up.

 

How much is that sled worth to you? If you have to start replacing crank bearings, balance shaft bearings, pistons etc. you are going to be looking at big money. More money than that sled is worth.

 

your betteroff buying a used motor

 

:nosnow: :cabinsno: nice paint

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (zr700man @ Feb 10 2010, 11:36 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

your betteroff buying a used motor[/b]

Running used Thundercat motors are hard to find and can not be had for less $ than he can rebuild his for and he even if he did find one he should do water pump seals in it anyways, if you were looking to rebuild a twin or buy a used motor then you may be better off with wit the used motor, but if you spend about the same $ to fix this one as you would spend on a different motor only thing is the one he is rebuilding will be all new instead of a gamble as to what you are getting witch is why you are better off just rebuilding your motor weather it be a twin or a triple unless something majorly catastrophic happens. Rebuild it, its worth it, any of the triples are worth going through and your sled looks to be in awesome shape so bite the bullet and just fix it, these triples have already proven to be the sleds to have being none of the newer ones can run with them, fix it up, you already have the late model wide front suspension in it, and it looks like you have some sort of later model rear in it as well. The sled is definitely worth fixing.

 

Sweet looking paint job!...I agree w/ Romp...Bite the bullet, and fix this sled rather than buying another motor and someone's junk...at least when your done rebuliding you own , motor you'll know what you have, and have a piece of mind about it as well. Rather than wondering when a used will start to give you problems.... my2cents :bleedgreen

 

The last 3 sled I've bought have all had top-end issues. And I agree that buying a used motor is not the best way to go.

Instead of rebuilding the Wildcat motor, I bought a 700cc locally last Fall. It was supposedly "fresh" and low miles. Less than 200 miles later it dumped the PTO side! So then I was into it for the cost of the motor AND had to rebuild it too! :angry: Luckily I sold off a lot of the obsolete 650 engine parts to help off-set the cashflow.

Being that the riding Season is already 2/3's over, your options are even better. The low priced "broken" sleds and used parts are already hitting the market ie. Craigslist, Ebay etc.

I'm always on a VERY tight budget (combination of family obligations and too many toys) so if it was mine, here's what I do:

*Buy a complete gasket/seal kit, pull the motor apart and install it.
**Buy a fresh piston + rings
***Then I'd call a few salvage yards or watch the classifieds for the expensive parts like the jug & head.

Unless there's some unseen internal damage, I bet you could rebuild that engine for under $500! That sure beats making payments on another sled!

 

refering back to $1000...it can go that high. set of pistons, gasket set, rebuild water pump, at least one cylinder, did those metal shavings get down into a crank bearing, counter balance bearings ???? he asked worst case scenario.

I had a skirt break on my 900 a few years back, my crank and counter balance were ok, case ok... one bad jug head ok. about $730 and I did the water pump.

 

Thanks for all the responses guys, I've been on suicide watch today, lol. I figured it would be upwards of 1k , just wanted to ask guys that have been thru it, you know been there done that. Romp I'm leaning your way probably rebuild it. A local rebuilder is going to have a look-see Saturday and he specializes in Cats, maybe he can tell me the cause. Waterpump was rebuilt at beginning of last season less than 300 miles on it. Funny I had no temp light come on so maybe the piston skirt was the issue and hopefully no damage to the case. Looks like the rest of the season I'll be riding my 33 year old Yammi "old reliable" little to no maintenance, but I think the Tcat will be back, Mike

 

The bits on the top of the piston look like bearing material to me. If you can pick the bits up with a magnet, they are steel and that means crank bearings. You also said you heard coolant gushing out, but there is no coolant passages in the case. I will also guess that the case has been damaged, but if it is only cracked on the bottom, or only a small hole, you can repair the case with JB Weld. A re-man crank may be in order and that will take you a long way toward the $1,000.

I've been down this road myself. It may cost more to fix than it is worth to anybody else, but what could you get with the same dollars it would cost to fix it? The cost of making my sled good would have only got me someone else's junk. My known junk, vs. someone else's unknown junk? Any time you buy something used you have to expect to spend more on repairs. This is where you learn to do the work yourself because paying for labour is a killer.

 

I am going to remove the engine tonight (barring no problems) and put it on a bench, its gotta come out sooner or later, plus my son agreed to help. The bits and pieces did stick to my magnetic pick-up tool so it will be interesting. This will be a first, any tricks or tips for a fast, safe removal are appreciated, thanks - Mike

 

I just parted one out last week - they can be a pita to pull apart - start soaking the cylinder studs with PB or liquid wrench asap - if you are gonna split the case you need to pull the flywheel first with the clutch attached then pull the primary clutch (easier to do these with the motor in the sled still). Also easier to pull the cylinders with the motor securly mounted in the sled. When you do get ready to pull it out have someone help you, they are heavy!!

 

just an update , removed engine w/o too much cursing and put it on the floor rolled it over and yes the bottom half case is cracked, no holes. See pics . Can this be welded? I didn't open it up i'm going to save that for an anonymous unlicensed backwoods cat master who comes highly recommended and lives fairly close. Any way I look at it this hurts the "hideout" money, ouch. Again thanks for the help - Mike